Page 48 of Magic Claimed

“Hey Logan, how was the sleepover?”

He rolled his eyes as he pulled out a bowl and a spoon. “It’s not a sleepover. We were just hanging out.”

“Okay, how was the hangout?”

He shrugged. “Good. I guess.”

The giant box of cereal I’d boughttwo days agoupended over his bowl, revealing a handful of crushed flakes and a few sprinkles of dust. “We’re out,” he said, setting it back on the counter. “Is there anything else to eat?”

Kes slipped past me to grab a loaf of bread from the counter and a jar of peanut butter from the cupboard.

He rubbed his eyes and started making a sandwich.

“Logan, I’ve just made arrangements for us to move out for a few days while the water damage is repaired. Think you can be packed by this afternoon?”

Half of the sandwich went in his mouth and was washed down by a gulp of milk. “Where are we going?”

“Well, here’s the tricky thing. I need you to not tell anyone.”

“Who am I gonna tell?” he grumbled. “I only know like one other person outside of us and Faris, and I don’t have a phone.”

Who was his one other person?

“It’s Niko’s son, Gio,” Kes explained quietly. “He’s alsothirteen. They met a while back and hung out yesterday at Faris’s place.”

Niko was one of Faris’s bouncers—a troll and a super decent guy. But I hadn’t known he had a son. Between him and my neighbor, it was becoming clear that I needed to get better at making small talk with the people around me.

“Okay, then that makes it easy, I guess,” I told Logan. “You only have to keep a secret from one person. We’re moving into one of the apartments in Callum’s building. Just while the renovations are in progress. But we don’t want anyone to know where we’ve gone.”

“Because of the crazy lady across the hall?”

Drat. I’d hoped he wouldn’t pick up on her animosity. “No. Well, at least not entirely.”

“Because of the people who are still after Kes?”

“Yes.” It wasn’t like I could hide this from him. He knew about Blake. Knew about the laws designating us as criminals for possessing stolen magic. Knew that all of us were still fugitives in some ways. And he’d been kidnapped along with Kes only a little over a week ago. “It’s the next safest place for us. And you’ll be close enough to keep up your lessons with Faris.”

“Cool.” He shoved the rest of the sandwich into his mouth and mumbled something that sounded a little like “I’ll start packing,” but also could have been “All of us are doomed,” or “You suck at planning.”

After he disappeared back into his room, I turned to Kes. “Where is Ethan?”

She pointed upwards. “On the roof.”

One of my favorite things about our building was the small rooftop garden area with tables and chairs for residents’ use. Ethan spent a fair amount of time there during the day—said it helped him stay calm and keep his magic under control.

I took a long look at her, checking for signs that draining Ethan consistently was more than she could handle, but she looked back with a raised eyebrow.

“I’m fine,” she said firmly. “I will tell you when I become un-fine. Now fill me in on everything with Callum.”

I kept it succinct, somehow stayed calm, and finished by explaining my strategy for the move. “If we go one at a time and take the bags separately, maybe no one will realize we’re gone until it’s too late to follow us.”

She nodded. “Makes sense. Ari and I can be packed quickly, then I’ll take her to the park like we usually do. Maybe plan a picnic lunch. If you can find a way to disguise the bags, we can meet you at The Assemblage sometime this afternoon.”

I almost protested the two of them being alone in the park for that long before I remembered… they wouldn’t actually be alone. And I’d made a bargain that it was time to make good on.

“Actually…” I paused, considering how I might present it in a way that wouldn’t freak her out. “I ended up seeing Shane last night, and I’ve been thinking…”

“Is this about the fact that he’s been stalking me ever since the kidnapping?”